Akuot Agany Kut, the teenager who suffered serious eye injuries narrated the terrifying moment when her own father asked her in the middle of nowhere – to choose between slitting her throat or cutting her eyes.
The life of Akuot took a dramatic turn – from an energetic young woman a few weeks back – to being visually impaired and confined to a hospital bed in Wau.
In an interview, the teenager explains that her father and uncle disclosed a plot to force her to marry a man she does not know.
“When we were at the village, his brother, my uncle said that I should be married off. I asked why I should be married when my mother is not there,” she said.
Akuot stated that when she tried to confront the two men, her uncle beat her until she ran away from home.
“His brother[uncle] started beating me and tied me down again and he insisted that I should be married off, so I refused and ran away.”
After she fled to Tonj East town, her father – a police officer combed the area looking for her. After finding her, he hired a bike and ordered her on it.
But in the middle of nowhere, Akuot said her father ordered the Boda-boda to leave before tying her down.
“When we went, we stopped, and he removed his rope and tied me down, the man who was riding the bike left and we were left the two of us.”
“When the rider had left, he started asking me if he should slit my throat or gouge my eyes so that I can be blind. I told him you better kill me first then slit my throat at once.”
Angelo Agany was arrested by Tonj East County authorities last week over the incident, and Akuot is scheduled to arrive in Juba on Wednesday to receive medical treatment.
Human rights activist Edmund Yakani “strongly” condemned the domestic violence act and called for justice.
Yakani said the perpetrator has inflicted a permanent disability on the teenager and violated the country’s strategy for the prevention of child and forced marriage.
According to reports, South Sudan women and girls have severely limited rights when entering into or attempting to dissolve a marriage.
Currently, there is no one specific constitutional law governing marriage and divorce in South Sudan.
The Constitution recognizes the customary laws and traditions of over 60 different ethnic groups as governing personal matters, including marriage and divorce, for their members.
